Golden Globes Beauty Prep With Lupita Nyong'O

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Rising star Lupita Nyong'O has been turning it out over the past few months. Not only have her top-drawer fashion choices been on point across the board, her daring beauty looks have also been absolutely stunning. That lipstick game? UNTOUCHABLE. As such, we were most anxious to see what brilliant statement she'd come up with next at last night's Golden Globe awards. And when she arrived on the red carpet in that vermilion, caped Ralph Lauren number and those gold-flecked eyes and ruby lips—let's just say we had to scrape our jaws off the floor. We couldn't wait to get the entire scoop on how that imperial look came to be, so we asked her makeup artist Nick Barose to spill all the behind-the-scenes details on what it took to get the 12 Years A Slave actress ready for the main event.

"We started at 11 in the morning," Barose began. "And we listed to Beyoncé's new album while she was getting ready. That was Lupita's request and we were all having fun. That's the thing about her—I always have to question if I'm actually working around her because it's always so fun." Barose continued to explain that since that "neon, almost glowing red" gown had been decided upon days before, he was able to ruminate about her look a lot before the show. "'Regal' has always been the key word for me as far as makeup goes on Lupita, and the cape definitely added to that feeling as well, so I decided to do an exotic throwback to Cleopatra with the beauty," he explained of his inspiration, calling out Elizabeth Taylor's and Vivien Leigh's iterations of the Egyptian queen as his reference images.

The first key element of the monarchial makeup was a strong brow, which Barose described as "'60s-inspired in that it's defined, but not too severe." After filling them in with Chanel Crayon Sourcils in Noir Cendré, Barose turned his focus to her eyes. He dusted the pale gold Chanel Ombre Essentielle shadow in Complice from lids to brow bones, then elongated her gaze with black liquid liner à la Ligne Graphique de Chanel for a cat-like look. "The liner had to be the perfect length, and it took a while to find that happy medium" Barose revealed. "If it was too short it wouldn't be special enough, but if it was too long then the look would've become a costume."

Aiming to avoid closing off her eyes, Barose smudged the shimmering navy hue in Chanel Les 4 Ombres palette in Lagons. "Lupita has really animated eyes, so I didn't want the makeup to take over her stare," he clarified. "The blue also looks beautiful on her chocolate skin tone." Next, he brushed on two coats of Chanel Inimitable Waterproof Mascara in Noir, focusing most of the product on the outer corners for added flare. "Hold the mascara wand vertically when applying the second coat to help lift the lashes at the outer corners," he recommended.

"We used a darker red for the lips that looked like the color of the dress if it were in a shadow," he explained. He first filled in the lips with two coats of Chanel Rouge Allure in Pirate using the brand's Pinceau Lèvres Biseauté angled lip brush. "This lip brush is a game changer. I don't use anything else," Barose gushed. "I normally use it instead of a lip pencil—that's how precise it is." For last night, though, he decided to amp up Lupita's lips by slightly tracing the edges afterwards with Chanel Le Crayon Lèvres in Rouge Profond. As for the finishing touch, Barose gilded Lupita's entire look by dabbing on the sparkly golden cream Chanel Illusion D'Ombre in Vision all over eyes and in the center of the pout for the last resplendent effect.

Once her face was complete, Barose said Nyong'O gave him an enthusiastic high-five. "I've NEVER cried after a job before!!!!" he posted on Facebook right after our chat. "Tears of joy though!! Blame it on the red wine!!" We say blame in on your pure talents, Nick. Lupita is now a bona fide beauty empress.